Missouri Case.net.
Court records, free.

1. What is Missouri Case.net?

Missouri Case.net is the free public records search operated by the Missouri Office of State Courts Administrator (OSCA). It is the single point of access for case information from most Missouri state circuit and associate circuit courts — covering criminal, civil, family, probate, traffic, small claims, and eviction matters.

The official URL is www.courts.mo.gov/casenet. Searching is free, requires no registration, and works in any web browser including mobile.

You will sometimes see Case.net written as “case net,” “casenet,” or “mocase.net.” They all refer to the same tool. The only correct address is courts.mo.gov/casenet.

2. How to search Missouri Case.net (step-by-step)

Case.net offers four search modes. Most people use the name search. Here is the full sequence:

1. Open Case.netGo to www.courts.mo.gov/casenet and pick a search type from the top navigation: Name Search, Case Number Search, Filing Date Search, or Judgment Index Search.
2. Pick the court locationChoose “All Participating Courts” for a statewide search, or narrow to a specific circuit (e.g., 21st Circuit for St. Louis County, 11th for St. Charles County, 22nd for the City of St. Louis, 23rd for Jefferson County). Narrower searches return faster.
3. Enter your search termsFor a name search, last name is required; first name is optional. Skip the apostrophe in names like O’Brien and try common spelling variants. For a case number search, use the full Missouri case-number format.
4. Filter the resultsResults show case number, parties, file date, court, and case type. Use the year and case-type filters (Criminal, Civil, Traffic, Probate, Family, Small Claims, Infraction) to narrow.
5. Open the docketClick the case number to see parties, attorneys, judge, charges or claims, every docket entry (the chronological log), scheduled hearings, and the current disposition. The latest entries are at the top.

3. Search Case.net by county (one click)

Each Missouri judicial circuit has its own court system. These are the most-searched circuits in the greater St. Louis metro — click to jump directly to a county-specific Case.net name search.

Each link opens the official Case.net name-search portal in a new tab. Once there, select the specific court from the dropdown.

4. Understanding Missouri case numbers

Every Missouri court case has a number that encodes the court, year, and case type. Knowing the format makes Case.net searches much faster.

A typical Missouri case number looks like this:

21SL-CR12345

• 21 — the judicial circuit number (21 = St. Louis County)
• SL — the county code (SL = St. Louis)
• CR — the case-type code (CR = criminal; CC = civil circuit; AC = associate civil; PR = probate; DR = dissolution of marriage; TR = traffic; SC = small claims)
• 12345 — the sequential case number for that court and year

If you know any one of these pieces, you can search faster. If you only have the last four digits, the name search is usually more efficient.

5. What records you can find on Case.net

• Criminal cases — charges, court dates, plea, sentence, probation status, warrants issued
• Traffic cases — speeding, careless driving, suspended-license, DWI, CDL tickets in most municipalities
• Civil cases — lawsuits, contract disputes, small claims, evictions, garnishments, replevin
• Family cases — divorce (dissolution of marriage), custody, child support, paternity, orders of protection
• Probate cases — estate administration, guardianships, conservatorships, will contests
• Judgments — civil money judgments, including amount, parties, and judgment creditor
• Workers’ compensation appeals (the initial DOLIR claim itself is not on Case.net)
• Tax and condemnation cases filed in circuit court

6. What records you will NOT find on Case.net

• Expunged records — once sealed under RSMo §610.140, the case is removed from Case.net entirely. See our Missouri expungement page for who qualifies.
• Juvenile cases — juvenile records are confidential under Missouri law and never appear publicly
• Sealed adoption records — confidential by statute
• Federal cases — use PACER for federal court records (separate system, paid)
• Mental-health and grand jury proceedings — sealed by court rule
• Some municipal courts — a handful of smaller Missouri cities still use local case-management systems that do not feed Case.net
• Workers’ comp initial claims — filed with the Division of Workers’ Compensation, not the courts
• Internal sealed documents — orders sealed in camera by a judge are noted on the docket but the contents are not viewable

7. Reading a Missouri Case.net docket

The case page is divided into sections. The most useful are Parties & Attorneys (who is suing whom, and who represents them), Charges or Claims (what the case is about), Docket Entries (the chronological log), and Dispositions (the final or current outcome).

Case.net uses standard Missouri court abbreviations. These are the ones most people need to recognize:

Abbreviation	Meaning
DEF	Defendant
PLA / PLT	Plaintiff
JURY	Jury trial setting
BENCH	Bench (judge-only) trial setting
CONT	Continued (case reset to a later date)
SIS	Suspended Imposition of Sentence (Missouri criminal disposition)
SES	Suspended Execution of Sentence
DWOP	Dismissed Without Prejudice (can be refiled)
DWP	Dismissed With Prejudice (cannot be refiled)
FTA	Failure to Appear (often triggers a warrant)
NCO	No Contact Order
OOR	Order of Protection
PSI	Pre-Sentence Investigation

8. Why a case may not appear

If a Case.net search returns nothing, the most common explanations are:

1. Spelling variation in the name — try last name only, then try common variants. Try without apostrophes or hyphens.
2. Wrong court — broaden from a single county to “All Participating Courts.”
3. Municipal court not in the system — call the city clerk directly. Most North County cities (Florissant, Hazelwood, Ferguson) participate; some smaller cities still do not.
4. Federal case — switch to PACER.
5. Expunged or sealed — the record was removed under court order. This is by design.
6. Recent filing — new cases can take 1–3 business days to appear.
7. Juvenile case — never visible publicly.
8. Pre-electronic-filing era — very old cases may exist only as paper records at the clerk’s office.

9. Common reasons people use Missouri Case.net

Case.net is one of the most-used public databases in Missouri. People typically come to it for one of these reasons:

• “What is my court date?” — a defendant lost the paperwork and needs the next hearing date. Open the case, scroll to Scheduled Hearings.
• “Did I get a warrant?” — missed a court date and need to know if a Failure to Appear warrant issued. Open your case and check the most recent docket entries.
• “What was the outcome of my case?” — old case from years ago, need to know the final disposition for an employer or licensing board.
• “Is this person being sued?” — vetting a potential business partner, tenant, or contractor before a major decision.
• “What does my background look like?” — people running a quick self-check before applying for a job, professional license, or housing.
• “Where do I file the response to this lawsuit?” — named in a civil case and need the court, case number, and answer deadline.
• “Has my ex filed for custody / divorce / modification?” — family matter triggered by service of papers or rumor.
• “Did my expungement actually go through?” — checking whether a sealed record really has been removed.

10. When to call a lawyer instead of searching alone

Case.net is a powerful tool but it is just an index. It tells you what was filed and what happened — not what any of it means for your situation. If any of these apply, the search is a starting point, not the answer.

• You found a case against you and need to understand the deadline to respond (often only 30 days for civil)
• You found an old conviction and want to know if expungement is possible
• You discovered a warrant has issued in your name
• You are searching for a person before a property purchase, hire, or other major decision
• You are checking on a pending case and the docket terminology is unclear
• You believe a record is on Case.net that should have been expunged
• You found a judgment against you that you didn’t know about (often a default)
• Your case shows “Show Cause” or “Order to Appear” in the docket

11. Missouri Case.net — 25 frequently asked questions

Related practice areas & resources

If you are looking up a Missouri court record because something is happening in your life, these are the next places on our site that probably matter most:

• Missouri expungement — remove qualifying records from Case.net entirely
• Criminal defense — if you are listed as a defendant in a Missouri criminal case
• DWI / DUI defense — including the 15-day administrative deadline that runs even before the criminal docket exists
• Traffic tickets — most municipal traffic cases on Case.net are resolvable without a court appearance
• License restoration — suspended-license cases and hardship petitions
• Statute of limitations checker — how long Missouri gives you to file or respond
• Legal glossary — 1,800+ Missouri legal terms in plain English
• Frequently asked questions — the questions Missouri clients ask before hiring a lawyer